


just a little bit (one inch)

by painttheworldinpastels



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Fluff, Four plus One, Height Differences, M/M, lots of platonic relationships because we love friendship, markhyuck
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-02
Updated: 2019-04-02
Packaged: 2020-01-01 04:12:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,727
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18328391
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/painttheworldinpastels/pseuds/painttheworldinpastels
Summary: Mark firmly believes that he is of above average height (and taller than Donghyuck) and is offended that Donghyuck thinks otherwise.Alternatively, four times that Hyuck asked other people for help to reach things he can't and the one time Mark attempts to get Hyuck to ask him to do it.





	just a little bit (one inch)

(1)

"JISUNG," Donghyuck screams from the kitchen, startling Mark who was lounging on the sofa. "JISUNG, COME HERE RIGHT NOW."

No one answers him, and Mark hears Donghyuck's sigh of despair despite being rooms away. "JISSUUUNNNGGG."

There's a crash, and Jaemin runs down the stairs. He hurtles himself towards the kitchen at a speed so sudden and jarring that Mark's Sense of Responsibility refuses to let him just sit in front of the TV and do nothing, so he follows Jaemin to the kitchen and peeks inside to see Jaemin explaining something to a pouting Hyuck.

"-but your screaming is distracting him," Mark hears Jaemin say.

"Well, if I'm distracting him then he better get down here and do as I say so he can have his precious peace and quiet," Donghyuck frowns. "He's gonna disobey his hyung??? REALLY JISUNG," Donghyuck bellows toward the staircase, loud enough to be heard upstairs.

Jaemin shakes his head. "What is it that you wanted, Haechannie?"

Donghyuck stares at Jaemin for a moment before giving him his most pitiful pout, the pout that gets people to feel like babying him and it makes Mark want to duck out of the room because it is very much effective and now he kind of wants to do whatever Hyuck wants. Just kind of.

"I can't reach the cereal," Hyuck points to the cupboard, just a bit out of Hyuck's reach.

Jaemin hums as he goes over to open the cabinet door and pulls out a cereal box. "This one?"

"No, the one behind that," Hyuck is tiptoeing to see into the cupboard and Mark finds it quite charming. Just quite, though.

Jaemin puts his hand on the correct box but he doesn't pull it out of the cupboard. "Haechan, it's noon, why do want cereal?"

"For lunch, duh."

Jaemin raises an eyebrow and pushes the cereal box back into the cabinet, causing Donghyuck to let out a small whine. "You're not gonna have cereal for lunch."

"But whyyyyy."

"Because that's unhealthy," Jaemin closes the cabinet and walks towards the kitchen door, and Mark tucks himself into a ball as small as he can to prevent being noticed. When he peeks back inside the kitchen, Jaemin is putting on one apron while holding another in his hand. "Tie this for me, will you?"

Donghyuck obliges. "You're gonna cook lunch?"

" _We're_ gonna cook lunch," Jaemin slots the extra apron in his hand over Hyuck's head and motions for him to turn around so Jaemin can tie it closed.

"But I thought we were gonna order takeout?"

"Not anymore," Jaemin boops Hyucks nose and pulls him to the kitchen sink. "Mark-hyung," Jaemin calls without looking to where Mark was still crouched down on the floor. "Do you wanna help cook too?"

Donghyuck snorts, and Mark's pride takes a hit. Sure he messed up on some eggs but that doesn't mean he can't cook!

Mark looks at Jaemin, who had stuck his head inside the fridge to look for ingredients, and casts another look at Donghyuck, who was washing some utensils and kitchenware. His thoughts bring him back to those Gordon Ramsey-forsaken eggs (which weren't even that bad, really) and he decides that he'd rather not be made fun of by his dongsaengs _again_.

"I'll go set the table," Mark mumbles.

Both Jaemin and Donghyuck let out soft chuckles, and Mark would have whacked the back of their heads if the scene in front of him wasn't so cute and domestic. Jaemin and Donghyuck's heads are huddled together as they decide on a menu and they work like a well-oiled machine, Hyuck cutting up some vegetables while Jaemin warms up a pan. It warms Mark's heart as well (just the slightest bit), so Mark leaves them to their devices as he chooses which plates to use.

(2)

Donghyuck's laughter can be heard all the way to the recording booth Mark's in, and to hear something in that confined space means that the something is very, very loud. Mark tries to ignore it until he can't anymore, so he goes out of the room and is greeted by Jeno giving Hyuck a piggy back ride.

"...why." It's all Mark can say. He's stressed and worried that management will ask him to change the lyrics _again_ and he hasn't slept properly in two days, so his response to the two playing hooky isn't very positive. Jeno and Hyuck notice and the broad grin drops off Hyuck's face instantly, and Mark feels a bit bad. Just a little bit though, because right now all he feels is exhaustion.

Hyuck tightens his arms around Jeno's shoulders but makes no move to get down and Jeno doesn't try to get Donghyuck off of him, tightening his grip around Hyuck's thighs instead. "Uhm. Manager-hyung asked us to change the lightbulb in the lobby since everyone's busy and we're not. We got a bit carried away, I guess? Sorry if we're disturbing you," Jeno apologizes and Mark immediately feels bad. Not just a bit bad, but full on terrible.

"No need to apologize, it's not a problem. But keep your voices a bit down please?"

Donghyuck nods vigorously, and the smile he had on before Mark confronted them returns in full force, bright and blinding. "Onwards, Jeno!" Donghyuck announces, and Jeno manages a few steps before Mark bombards them with another question.

"Jeno, isn't Haechan heavy though? You can put him down if you like." Mark knows that Donghyuck probably already told Jeno to push him off or something if he's being too much of a bother, but Jeno is too nice to reject Donghyuck. (Which is something Mark understands, because Mark himself would put in extra effort just to make Hyuck happy. And if Hyuck wants a piggy back ride, then so be it.)

Jeno waves off Mark's concerns, jostling Donghyuck a bit in the process and causing Hyuck to cling on to Jeno tighter. "Nah, he's actually lighter than I remembered. Haechannie, have you been eating well?"

"Very well, thank you very much. Now onwards, noble steed! Bye Mark, see you back at the dorms!" Hyuck pats Jeno's head lightly and Jeno begins to pretend-gallop down the hall, causing Hyuck to erupt in soft giggles. 

When Mark walks back into the recording booth, he finds himself missing Donghyuck's laugh. Just a little bit though. Right now, he has work to do.

(3) 

Mark hears something clatter to the floor along with a heavy "oof", so he runs towards the sound. When he gets there, he sees Donghyuck resting on Renjun's shoulders in front of a shelf, the Daesang trophy from the Korean Entertainment Arts Awards cradled in his arms. A broom is lying on the floor beside them, ignored.

"What's going on?" Mark asks as he helps Renjun keep Hyuck steady.

Renjun answers him with a huff, obviously having a hard time conversing and holding Donghyuck up at the same time. "Display the Daesang," is all he gets out before he sways forward a bit and Hyuck braces himself against the shelf for balance, lightly hitting Renjun's side with his foot. "Don't let me die, Junnie."

"I'll drop you if you don't hurry."

"Come closer to the shelf then, I can't reach it from this far away! I've got short arms!"

"Shouldn't Renjun be the one carried, then?" Mark interrupts them. Renjun glares at him, gaze determined as he shuffles closer to the shelf. "I can do it, I can lift him! I've been working out, go ask Jaehyun-hyung."

"I work out with you too, you know," Donghyuck grumbles as he successfully places the trophy in the middle of the shelf. "And he didn't want to be the one being carried," he says to Mark as he gets off Renjun.

"I have been thrown and carried far too many times for it to be fun anymore," Renjun stretches to ease his joints, stepping backwards to admire the trophy on the top of the shelf. "It looks nice," Renjun smiles, looping his arm around Donghyuck's.

"It's in the middle for now, but one day we're gonna push it to the farthest side to make room for other trophies!" Hyuck's eyes are sparkling as he speaks. He turns to Mark, who was most definitely not admiring Hyuck's unkempt hair and his crooked smile and the proud tone of his voice and his reflection in the glass doors of the shelf, tired but euphoric still.

Okay, maybe just a little bit.

"There's gonna be lots of others," Mark assures them as he threads his arm around Hyuck's free one. "Don't ever doubt that."

Donghyuck beams at him, and Mark is certainly glad that Renjun didn't drop him.

(4)

Mark notices it the fourth time around, when they're not even with the dreamies. When Donghyuck needs something he can't reach he always looks for members taller than him to do it for him, but he's never asked Mark despite the fact that technically, Mark is taller. Just a by little bit, but it still counts.

This time, they're in the dance practice room with 127. Donghyuck had accidentally swung his towel too hard and now the towel was resting on top of a pillar at the side of the room, way too far for Hyuck to reach even if he jumps for it.

Donghyuck scowls at it for a few minutes before taking a deep breath and yelling "Johnny-hyung". Johnny jogs up to him and they have a short conversation before Johnny reaches up on his tiptoes to grab the towel. He dangles it out of Hyuck's reach for a bit and Donghyuck pouts at Johnny until he gives Hyuck the towel, ruffling Hyuck's hair before he walks back to wherever he was staying before Hyuck called for him.

Mark approaches Donghyuck after Hyuck's taken a big gulp of water. "I could have helped you get the towel back, you know," Mark says casually as he takes a few sips from Hyuck's water bottle.

"How?" Hyuck accepts the bottle when Mark hands it back to him and drains the remaining amount, eyes locked on Mark, who was looking everywhere but at Donghyuck.

Mark clears his throat. "I could have given you a piggy back ride, or I could have lifted you."

"But would we have been able to reach _that_?" Donghyuck points back to where the towel was a few minutes ago, high and imtimidating.

"...we could make it happen."

"Or I could ask Johnny-hyung, one of the tallest members of NCT, to get it so we wouldn't have to fatigue ourselves." Hyuck puts the water bottle on the floor and sits down next to it, Mark following suit. "And why are you offering to help little ol' me out all of a sudden?"

Mark scratches the back of his neck. "So you know I'm always here to lend you a hand? Since I'm taller than you."

Donghyuck stares at him like he's said something bizzare. "Excuse me? Aren't we the same height?"

"I'm an inch taller though," Mark puffs his chest out and Donghyuck snickers. "No you're not, I just slouch a lot so it seems like you're a bit taller."

"Because I _am_ ," Mark counters, and their argument escalates until Taeyong steps in with a ruler, a pencil, and an eraser which doesn't really remove the pencil marks from the wall, but they're just pencil marks so hopefully management doesn't notice. Taeyong leads them towards a wall and makes them stand straight against it, marking their heights so they can see who's taller.

Mark wins by just a little under an inch.

"Whatever," Donghyuck grouses. "It's only by a little bit, it doesn't matter anyway."

"Just a little bit is enough though," Mark says haughtily, and Donghyuck ignores him for the rest of practice.

(+1)

The height thing doesn't come up again until one day Mark sees Donghyuck in the kitchen again, this time with Chenle. Chenle is trying his hardest to reach the cereal box which someone had shoved to the farthest corner of the cupboard (probably Jisung). It takes some effort, and in the end they just end up screaming for Jisung to come. Jisung reaches it with ease and hands the box to Donghyuck, but not before grabbing a handful to scarf down. He and Chenle leave as Donghyuck rummages around for milk and a bowl.

Mark waits for Hyuck to notice him standing by the door. Hyuck finally does after he finishes preparing his cereal and Mark marches towards him and grabs the cereal box, aggresively shoving it back in the cupboard before plopping down in the seat next to Donghyuck. Donghyuck just looks at him blankly as he shovels spoonful after spoonful of cereal into his mouth, and Mark waits for him to finish the bowl before speaking.

"I understand getting Jisung to get that for you," Mark gestures towards the cupboard, "but Chenle? Chenle and I are the same height!"

"So?"

"So? So why don't you ask me to get stuff for you? You called Chenle from upstairs when you _knew_ I was just in the living room, doing absolutely nothing.

"You were watching something on your phone."

"YouTube has a pause button, Donghyuckie." Mark doesn't know why he's so riled up about this but what annoys him the most is that fact that Chenle isn't even one of the taller members of Dream and yet Donghyuck called him for help, while Hyuck has never asked him even once.

Hyuck fiddles with the spoon, not looking Mark directly in the eye. "I don't want to bother you," he says, his voice small and vulnerable and it breaks Mark's heart.

"You're never a bother, Hyuckie," Mark tells him sincerely, placing his hand on Hyuck's thigh and giving it a slight squeeze for reassurance. "Feel free to ask me for help with anything. Anything, from advice to moral support to reaching stuff for you. I might not be as tall as the other members but I'll certainly make an effort for you."

"Really?" Hyuck looks up from the cereal bowl and Mark swears that he's never seen Donghyuck as gorgeous as he was at that moment, with his hair all fluffy and eyes all hopeful. Absolutely stunning, not just a little bit.

"Really." Mark hopes that Hyuck sees his sincerity. "Anything for you."

"Really?" Hyuck's tone turns teasing, and his gaze becomes mischievous. Mark wonders if it's too late to back out.

"...really." Donghyuck breaks out into a grin that could rival the Cheshire cat and Mark lets out a sigh. _Oh boy_.

 

Mark almost immediately regrets telling Donghyuck that he could be his personal reaching machine. It's not because Donghyuck exploits him, because Donghyuck only asks him for help as a last resort. It's the fact that he himself has a hard time reaching things Hyuck can't. Mark soon finds out that an inch isn't that much of a difference.

He considers just buying a stepping ladder for Hyuck and he tells Donghyuck so, but all he gets as a reply is "you'll be the one using the ladder anyway, _hyung_ , since you insist on flexing your extra inch." Which is Mark's fault, really, but he chooses to blame Donghyuck for being a whole inch smaller and for instigating his Hyung Instincts and making him feel like he should protect Hyuck from everything evil in this world.

Mark is thankful for his extra inch though. It allows him to tilt his head the slightest bit downwards to talk to Hyuck, to prompt Hyuck to "borrow" his clothes because they're only an inch apart and it shouldn't be that different from his own (which is wrong because Mark is broader than Hyuck is and Hyuck always seems to look extra tiny whenever he wears Mark's clothes, and Mark's not complaining about it even though he himself is running out of things to wear), and though it has nothing to do with the extra inch Hyuck always curls up to Mark when they cuddle and Hyuck fits so perfectly in his arms. Mark will never admit it but seeing the sunrays hit Donghyuck's face just right at dawn, when the colors of the sunrise play upon Donghyuck's complexion and make him look more ethereal than he already is, makes his heart speed up a bit.

Just a little bit, of course.

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by the eternal argument of whether Mark is taller than Haechan or if they're just the same height + our first markhyuck vlive in literal YEARS
> 
> twt: whatsavotingacc


End file.
